Davis Cup Tennis 2019: Europe/Africa Zone 2 Schedule, Predictions and More
The 2019 Davis Cup will return to action with two ties in Group II of the Europe/Africa region on Friday, marking the first ties to be played under the new format outside of February's qualifiers.
Romania will play host to Zimbabwe in Piatra Neamt, while Lithuania travel to Marrakesh for a tie against Morocco. Both ties will start on Friday, April 5, and continue the following day.
Romania vs. Zimbabwe
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Friday start: 1 p.m. GMT/8 a.m. ET
Saturday start: Noon GMT/7 a.m. ET
Morocco vs. Lithuania
Friday start: 11 a.m. GMT/6 a.m. ET
Saturday start: 10 a.m. GMT/5 a.m. ET
Both of the European nations will be the higher-ranked outfit in each clash, with the Romanians the top-seeded nation in the group.
Romania will be the clear favourites over Zimbabwe and will have the only player ranked inside the top 100 in their squad. Marius Copil reached his highest career ranking in January, No. 56, and currently sits in 80th place on the ATP rankings.
He's looking forward to representing his country:
The 28-year-old is a major weapon for Romania, giving the hosts an established singles player who is expected to sweep his rubbers. His big serve should overwhelm the relatively inexperienced visitors.
Zimbabwe can call on Benjamin Lock and Courtney John Lock, two brothers with ample doubles experience who could team up in Romania.
They have described the tie as the highlight of their year:
Takanyi Garanganga is the team's top-ranked singles player, but he has never made it into the ATP's top 250. All of his career titles have come on the ITF Futures Tour, and he hasn't won a tournament outside of Harare since 2016. Romania beat Zimbabwe in Harare in their only Davis Cup meeting in 2000.
Like Romania, Lithuania have one top-100 player in their squad, with Ricardas Berankis coming in as the 98th-ranked player in the world.
The 28-year-old has ranked as high as No. 50 during his career, and he impressed in an upset win over Belgium's David Goffin at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in January.
He's expected to make short work of his singles opponents, leaving Laurynas Grigelis needing just one win to secure the tie. Morocco's team only has a single ranked player, 34-year-old Lamine Ouahab, who sits well outside the top 400.
The Moroccans will have the home crowd behind them and have won the only meeting between these two nations, a clean sweep in Vilnius in 2011. The Lithuanian team has come a long way since then, however, and has a clear edge in talent at this point.
Predictions: Romania cruise past Zimbabwe, losing no more than a single match, while Morocco's home advantage isn't enough to lead them past Lithuania.
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